Major metropolitan cities such as Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai, etc will continue to be the major focus of Indiana and NRI buyers as markets for long term investmentsETRealty | Updated: January 01, 2016, 10:33 IST

After a prolonged slowdown, the real estateindustry is now hoping that new measures by the government such as housing for all and opening up of foreign direct investment alongside softening of interest rates could bring in the much needed push for the sector. ETRealty.com spoke to Ashish Jerath, VP-Sales, Emaar MGF on what 2016 has in store for the industry. Excerpts:

How would you describe the current situation of the real estate market in India in 3-4 lines?For the residential real estate segment in India, both 2014 and 2015 have been the most challenging years since the 2008-09 crisis. Buyer confidence and purchases hit a low and were followed by market correction in pricing. This balance is now being regained with buyers returning to market and query levels going up once again.

How do you see the real estate market changing in 2016? Do you see an improvement in buyer sentiment? What is your advice to them for buying homes in 2016?In 2016, we expect the trend of increasing demand for office space, to spread to other verticals of residential segment. Two factors are expected to support this trend:a) The pent-up demand of last two years is expected to return to market, where buyer was in a wait and watch mode is expected to change. This will be aided with developers going all out to make the best offers to assist in conversion and RBI ensuring that the rate cuts are passed on to home loan to its full extent. b) Positive mood of economy and various economic and policy reforms taken this year are expected to translate to enhanced buyer confidence in future and translate to higher consumption in the economy. Home being one of the drivers of consumption is expected to benefit from this mood change.

Interest rates have dropped a bit over the last six months. Have the funding woes for real estate developers started to ease? Are there any new funding avenues for builders today?Interest rate drop was more relevant for home buyers getting a better rate of interest for their purchases. This has happened to some extent and will further help as the banks pass on the full extent of the rate cut to the buyer.On the developer front, the rate cut has not really translated in to a major factor in easing funding issues. However, some of the other measures have been positive, including: c) Relaxation in FDI norms, reduction in interest rates, d) Controlled inflation levels, e) Cabinet's approval to Real Estate Bill, f) Government's focus on infrastructure development, g) Introduction of real estate investment trustsApart from this, the industry has witnessed highest levels of PE investments.

What are your expectations from the Union Budget 2016? What will be the impact of GST and real estate regulatory bill, if cleared in 2016, on the real estate sector?We are expecting some betterment from the Union Budget 2016, as the real estate sector is eagerly expecting Infrastructure status to ensure that policy dispensation available for infrastructure projects also extends to the realty sector.In case GST gets cleared in 2016, the various taxation problems will also get resolved for the common man and industry as well. With GST, the complete transaction will be constituted as a single transaction to be taxed by RNR (Revenue Neutral Rate) rate as decided between SGST (State GST) and CGST (Central GST).Moreover, if the Real Estate regulatory bill gets a go ahead, it will provide the much needed 'trust' factor in the sector, alongside standardiSing several functional aspects of the sector, which are currently unorganiSed. This will ensure transparency and accountability in the realty sector and will help customers to make informed decisions.

Which are the top three micromarkets in India today from an investment perspective on which you would bet your personal monies for medium to long term?Major metropolitan cities such as Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai, etc will continue to be the major focus of Indiana and NRI buyers as markets for long term investments. The emerging growth areas in Gurgaon such as Golf Course Road, Golf Course Extension Road, New Gurgaon (NH8), and Dwarka Expressway are shaping up nicely for residential and commercial development.Some of the tier-2 and tier-3 locations like Jaipur, Mohali, Lucknow, and Indore are likely to attract interest from buyers in these states as well as NRI segment as these are benefiting from economic uptrend and revival of manufacturing/industry around these cities. Regional developments triggers such as international airport at Mohali will influence demand and choice of buyers and investors in these markets. Also, these cities are in the list of 100 smart cities, funded by the government which will provide the much needed boost in the region. The overall infrastructure development and upcoming metro rail projects in these areas can encourage the regional property segment and the economy as a whole.